1994 - October

The following is from the Sony Music www site and
appeared soon after the release of the second album.

The Return Of The Space Cowboy

The cat's back. In 1993 Jamiroquai brought a ray of
sunshine into all funky people's lives. In fact there
were more than a few non-funkies who underwent miraculous
conversions to that fresh and jazzy sound - enough indeed
to make Jamiroquai Britain's top selling debut band of
last year. The first album "Emergency On Planet
Earth" harnessed a vibe and touched a nerve
both lyrically and musically, entered the UK chart at
Number One in June last year, and has now garnered sales
of nigh on half a million in the UK alone. And the media?
Well, the media couldn't get enough, the backlash had
begun almost before the first album was out. There was,
however, one thing upon which the rarely agreeable media
did agree - Jason Kay was a star.

Little more than a year later and the man has been
beavering away with his band on the follow up album. He's
toured the globe, worked hard, played hard, maybe even
mellowed just a little, but the one continuous thread,
one consuming passion burned brightly all that time - the
music. Music is what Jay really cares about: the sound of
the snare, the stab of the horn, the tone of the scat,
the lilt of the melody. Now, from out of his head, bring
the man back down to planet earch, comes the second album
from Jamiroquai: "Return Of The Space
Cowboy", out on S2 on October 17th.

Jamiroquai (JAM/EAR/OH/KWAI - that's as in Bridge Over
the River ...) derives its name from the native American
Indian tribe the 'Iroquois' ("many aspects
of their philosophy are relevant, especially their
reverence of the earth"). The band was
formed in 1992 and created a massive underground buzz
when their instant classic, "When You Gonna
Learn?", had its first one off release on Acid
Jazz. A rammed gig at the then Town and Country Club in
London (January 1994) smashed preconceptions of lack of
live musicianship in 'dance' music - Jamiroquai had a
rare excitement around them that was undeniable: the cat
in the hat had arrived.

Even when detractors were at their most vehement Jay
was speaking directly to the people. He was loud, honest,
he fu*ked up now and again but live and on record a force
to be reckoned with as his band pumped out their own
unique brand of jazz funk for the nineties - didgeridoo
and all. No twelve inch promo dance starts Jamiroquai,
they were going to have big fat albums - which is
precisely what Sony Soho Square (S2) offered to them at
the start of 1994 - eight to be precise.

The first album contained many hits: "When
You Gonna Learn?""bit of disco,
jazz inflections and a didgeridoo in the blender".
The first single on Sony 2 "Too Young To
Die", a Top Ten hit, full of lilting strings,
funky horns and the coupling of an infectious melody with
an anti-war lyric. The debut also spurned two more hits
in "Blow Your Mind" and the LP's title
track, The Emergency On Planet Earth album saw
the birth of an eclectic talent.

The front man and driving force of Jamiroquai is JK,
now 24 years old and a jumping jack with an impossible
voice, strutting attitude and a lot to get off his chest.
Jamiroquai's music is funk with a feeling and a meaning.
Jay's not just there to shove his ideas down your throat
but when he's belting out a tune and reeling in a
mesmerised audience on the emotion you know he means it.
Music has been in his life forever. Earliest memories are
of being dragged from pillar in London to posts as far
away as Las Vegas with his Jazz singer mother Karen Kay.
Raised in Ealing young Jay sound found himself at the
centre of a burgeoning scene that included Brand New
Heavies and Young Disciples. Musical luminaries crowd
Jay's record collection in his home, still on the West
side of London: Sly Stone, Roy Ayres, Areth and Marvin
(of course) and Gil Scott Heron to name a few.

A major deal and a successful first album that has
sales approaching two million worldwide haven't altered
the plot for Jay - he know exactly what he wants and he's
gone for it on his second album. Musically "Return
Of The Space Cowboy" is crisper, fuller, more
relaxed - its the kind of accomplished sound that time,
experience and talent can bring. Jay still holds the same
external issues dear - the environment, government
incompetence etc and while dealing with certain of these
(check "Manifest Destiny" about the
plight of the native American Indians and their struggle
to keep their land or the angry funk of "Just
Another Story" about the homeless), as a whole "Space
Cowboy" is more personal lyrically, more
considered musically.

The album takes that original vibe and leads us on
another journey - throug the sensuous melodies of tracks
like "Half The Man" an almost blues-y
cry for help, to the groove of "Just Another
Story" with its phattest of phat basslines, the
spiritual syncopation of the intrumental: "Didge"
and the misty, jazzy ambience of "Morning
Glory". Jay and the band never want to settle
happily into one comfortable little generic definition
however: looking outwads is the name of the game. This is
a hybrid of styles musically and vocally - saying he
sounds like Stevie Wonder is both "flattering
and misguided" recons Jay - "but
above all boring".
Listen without prejudice as a former (?) stablemate used
to say.

The concerns on "Space Cowboy"
then, are more internal than external. As Jay says "I've
not been out there as much seeing all the sh*t that goes
on like I did when I was struggling - I've been touring,
writing and experiencing so called 'success' that's not
really 'real' but it's been my reality for a year so
there's a lot on the album about what's gone on inside my
head as well as what we all see on the news".

One thing Jay will not do is churn out tailor made
ideas or spurious remarks to sell records or garner
popularity - it has been obvious from the start that he
says what he feels and what you see is what you get. The
quality of his music is as high on the list as the issues
he holds dear and for him it's got to be live. Musicians
and the voice. Many of his vocals are recorded in one
take - computers and programming are certainly not in the
picture. So listen. Welcome to The Return Of The
Space Cowboy.